The Woeful Tale of Hermione Granger
by DracoMalfoy456
Summary: It's Hermione's last year at Hogwarts, and she has found out that she has Leukemia and she has been made Head Girl. Will she be able to handle the stress? And will she be able to keep her feelings hidden for the new Head boy? Rated T just in case.
1. Chapter 1: The horrible news

_Cancer _

"Mum? I'm not feeling well today" A scared Hermione told her mother one hot August morning.

"What's wrong dear?" Her mother replied, worry in her eyes.

"I just feel so tired, and that bruise on my leg I got in March hasn't gone away yet."

"Would you like me to take you to the doctors? Or maybe that wizard hospital, Saint Margo's?"

"First of all, it's saint Mungo's. And second, I think it would be better to go to the muggle doctors first… just so we can find out what's wrong, and if it's serious, then I can go to Saint Mungo's." Hermione told her mother, while getting her coat from her room.

It had been five months since her fall at school. At the time, she didn't think anything about it, thinking the bruise would go away on its own, without magic. But, as the month passed, turning into April, the bruise had been as pronounced as ever. She then tried to make it go away with magic, but it always came back. She also felt tired all the time, and hardly paid any attention in class, which wasn't like her at all. But still, she brushed it off, thinking she was just stressed about Voldemorts return, and the fear that he would invade Hogwarts. When the year was finally about to end, she thought they'd be safe, but she thought wrong. While Harry and Dumbledore were away looking for the second to last Horcrux, the death eater's came. What happened next, only the ones at the Astronomy tower that night truly know, but from what Harry had told her, Draco Malfoy had been fixing a vanishing cabinet in the Room of Requirement all year, and when he finally fixed it, the death Eaters came, but got intercepted by the Order of the Phoenix. But somehow Draco had managed to break through, and had tried to kill Dumbledore. Just when Draco looked like he was going to take the Headmaster's offer to keep him and his family safe, the other Death Eaters came, and so did Snape. Dumbledore had begged Snape not to kill him, when the unforgivable curse was shouted from her Potions teachers' mouth, and Dumbledore fell, and never got up again.

So much had happened that Hermione had forgotten about her bruise, and began to mourn her Teacher's murder. The day's leading up to Dumbledore's funeral were the worst one's in her entire life, as she and her friends talked about the following year. Harry didn't want to return to Hogwarts, wanting to find the last Horcrux, and destroy it, finally killing off Voldemort. Hermione reasoned with him, saying they had no clue where it could be, or what it was. After a few hours, she finally convinced him that his time would be best spent at school, helping protect it from Voldemort, at they thought up places the last Horcrux might be.

Thinking of where the last Horcrux might be had filled up most of her days, so she thought that was why she felt tired and sick all the time, lack of sleep did do that to some people. But it was finally catching up to her, after the fifth month of having the bruise and feeling so tired all the time, she had had enough. And this was why, on this hot morning of August, Hermione had given in, and went to the doctor for help.

After a long car ride, she finally made it to the doctor's office, and signed in. Realizing it would most likely take a while; she sat in one of the waiting room's chairs, and took out one of her favorite muggle books, Romeo and Juliet.

About half an hour had passed before the muggle nurse called Hermione back.

"Hermione Granger, you're next." The smiling nurse called at them.

"Well, here goes nothing." Hermione murmured, though no one heard her.

She had to wait a little while before the doctor came into see her, and when he did, Hermione told him what was wrong, and answered all of his questions with amazing accuracy. Despite all on her mind, she still managed to keep a memory bank of everything that happened to her, though she left out where she was when she fell, and what school she went to. As the appointment ended, she got some blood taken from her, telling her that she would hear back from them in a few days with the results.

The days passed slowly for Hermione, not only waiting for the blood test results, but waiting for her Hogwarts letter. It was already August 10th, and the letter was supposed to be there any day now. After looking towards the sky one final time that night, she went into her room, where she heard the telephone ring. She felt her heart jumped, like it always did when she heard the phone ring. She held her breath as she heard her mother's voice in the next room.

"Hello, Doctor Granger here, Uh-huh, and how soon do you want us to go in? Immediately?" Her mother paused for a few moments before talking again, "alright, we'll be there in thirty minutes, thank you Dr. Melvin, and good day to you to." Hermione released the breath she had been holding, waiting for her mother to come into her room to get her, or to call her out. A few minutes passed, when she heard a soft knock on her door.

"Come in" Hermione said.

"Hey honey, that was Dr. Melvin, he said he wants us to come in." Her mother replied, worry in her eyes.

"Alright mum, I'll be ready in a few minutes." Hermione got up from her chair, and walked around her bed, and picked up her favorite sweater, and went outside, and went over to her mother.

Hermione looked out the window, and saw the night life pass her by. She always thought muggle nightlife was silly, as she preferred reading to dancing anyway. Looking out the window kept her entertained for most of the car ride, but as they got closer to the hospital, she began to panic.

_Why would they want me to come in so late, why couldn't it wait until tomorrow? _She thought bitterly. She knew that if it indeed was something serious, she was going instantly to Saint Mungo's. Not that she thought the muggle doctor's weren't competent, but she knew if she wanted to get better, her best bet was Saint Mungo's. Suddenly, a horrible thought crossed her mind. What if she had a wizarding disease that the muggles had never heard of before? This thought played her mind as she stared out the window once more, lost in thought.

Once they got there and signed in, they didn't have much of a wait, since it was eight P.M. When she heard her name, her heart beat very fast. '_This is it' _she thought, as she followed the nurse to the room. She waited a few minutes before the doctor came in, looking upset. Regarding her, Dr. Melvin sat down, and told her mother to do the same, before he told her the news."

"Ms. Granger, I am deeply saddened to tell you, that you have Leukemia. Now, the Leukemia you have is the most common in young children, but it seems it's the type you have. The survival rate is about 85% with Chemotherapy if the cancer has not spread, but your cancer has spread, and the chance of survival is around 25%. I'm deeply sorry." He said, looking right at Hermione. He said some more things about Chemotherapy, but she wasn't listening, her thoughts on what she had read about Leukemia, and she desperately hoped that in the wizarding world, she had a better chance of survival. She saw that Dr. Melvin had stopped talking, and she turned her attention on him, asking a question.

"Umm, excuse me, Dr. Melvin? When would I have to start the Chemo?" She asked.

"It would have to be very soon Ms. Granger, so the cancer doesn't spread."

"Alright, can we go now?"

"Of course, let me bring you some papers about Leukemia."

She took the papers he gave her, and went out to the car, followed by her silently sobbing mother. Hermione didn't even notice her mother was crying until she heard a small sniff behind her. When she turned around, she saw tears streaming down her mother's face. Hermione had been so lost in her thoughts, she didn't even think of her mother until now. So, she stopped, turned completely around, and gave her mom a hug, not showing her own emotions, just trying to comfort her mother. And so they walked to the car, not talking, but their arms were around each other, seeing as how they were about the same height. On the car ride home, Hermione was again deep in thought, hoping if the Wizard world did have a cure, or even a treatment, for Leukemia, it would be better than the muggle treatment, which would make her lose all her hair. And when they got home, she gave her mom one last hug, before closing her door, and collapsing on the bed, finally letting her tears flow.

It was a few weeks after she got her news at the muggle hospital. She was in her room, putting on her new wig, hoping it didn't look as ridicules ad she thought. This thought brought more tears to her eyes, as she remembered the day she went to Saint Mungo's, to see if they had better treatment than the muggles.

_She was sitting with a healer, telling her about her illness._

"_Is there any cure?" Hermione asked the healer, praying the answer was yes._

"_Well, I don't know if you'd call it a cure, but there is a treatment, and you have a 90% chance of survival, but there are side effects." The healer answered_

"_Wh-what are the side effects?" _

"_You'll feel tired all the time, your memory might not be as good as it used to be, and… your hair will fall out." _

"_M-my hair? Isn't there some other way?"_

"_I'm afraid not, and you can't grow it back with magic, not until the treatment is over, but you could wear a wig, and we have a wide array of wigs for you to choose from."_

"_When does the treatment start?" Hermione whispered._

"_It's best to start right away, before the cancer spreads more."_

_A few minutes later, another healer came in, and started the treatments._

So here she was, looking at herself in the mirror, trying on her new wig for the first time. Since she never went anywhere in the muggle world, she didn't have to wear the uncomfortable thing around the house. But when she was at Hogwarts, she would be noticed a lot more. If she didn't wear the wig, she knew she'd be teased by the Slytherins.

She heard a knock on her door, and when she opened it, her mother was standing there, holding her books for the next year. When she got her Hogwarts letter in the mail, she just handed it to her mother unopened, asking her to get the stuff for her, so she wouldn't have to be seen in public just yet. Hermione had gotten a shock when she'd finally opened the letter, seeing the red and gold badge showing her she'd been chosen as head girl. As her mother entered the room, she placed the books gently on the bed, and pulled her daughter into a hug.

"I got your books, are you sure you want to go back to school?" Her mother said as she looked at the girl in her arms.

"Yeah, I'm sure. I can't just hide in my room all my life." Hermione replied, a determined look on her face.

"Alright. I sent an owl to your headmistress a few days ago, asking her if you could skip the long train ride, and just apparate, or something else, and I just got the response back." Her mother said, handing her a letter with the Hogwarts crest on it.

_Dear Dr. Granger, _

_I am deeply sorry to hear about Ms. Granger's illness, and I do agree the long train ride would not be best for her. I will connect the Floo network to your house on the first, and she can come by floo. I'll send an owl with the time she should come._

_From,_

_Minerva Mcgonagall._

As she read this, Hermione's heart lifted a little. _At least I won't have to tell everyone immediately. _She thought.

The days passed a little too quickly for Hermione's liking. Before she knew it, it was the first, and there she was, already in her robes by the fireplace. The owl Mcgonagall had sent with the time told her she would be appearing by floo to come and get her at noon, so she could get ready before everyone else came. Hermione looked at the clock, which told her it was 11:59. A minute later, the fire roared, and out came Professor Mcgonagall, who walked up to Hermione.

"Everything ready?" The professor asked.

"Yeah." Hermione said, moving to her trunks, before Mcgonagall stopped her.

"I'll get your trunks, take some floo powder, and say Hogwarts clearly."

Hermione nodded, and went over to the fire. She looked around her house, before flooing [[**A/N Don't know what else to call it]] **away.


	2. Chapter 2: The Return

**A/N: Alright, I completed it. It's not great, and I'm not sure on the dialogue… I don't even really like the story, but some people do, so I'll keep going… it should get better soon, and less sad. After they tell their secrets, they find comfort in each other. And yes, Draco does have a secret, but I don't want to repeat myself, so I'll tell it later, when he tells Hermione. It might not flow well, because I wrote this at different times, and I'm not rereading it, because, as I said, I don't like the story. Please review.**

~XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX~

As soon as she landed in McGonagall's office, she took a seat in the chair in front of the headmistress's desk. A few minutes later, and the professor was there, along with Hermione's trunks. She had decided to leave her cat, Crookshanks at home, since he would be too much for her to handle. She thought he'd be fine at home with her parents.

They talked a little about Hermione's schedule, and how she was allowed to leave the school one day a week for her treatments. She was also told that if she didn't feel well, or if the school work was too much for her, to tell a teacher immediately. They talked some more about her responsibilities as head girl, and how she got her own dorm room, a new feature this year.

"You'll also have to share the dorm room with the head boy," McGonagall said "Not the room itself, just the common room, and the bathroom" she added quickly, noticing the confused look on Hermione's face.

"Oh. Who is the Head Boy, anyway?" Hermione asked.

"Well, the Head Boy is usually chosen for his grades in the classroom, and his leadership abilities. I also had a note from Professor Dumbledore before he died to make this particular boy Head Boy." McGonagall said, obviously sure Hermione would not like who the fellow Head would be. "The Head Boy is Draco Malfoy"

"What? Why? He'll just make fun of me more! Professor!" Hermione shrieked.

"Calm down Granger, as I said, the Heads are chosen for their grades and leadership abilities, and Mr. Malfoy has the second highest grades in your year, only behind you. As for his leadership abilities, it seems quite clear he'd be a good choice, and Professor Dumbledore said that no matter what happens, Mr. Malfoy becomes the Head Boy, along with yourself."

"But he's a Death Eater! He has made my life miserable for the past six years! Since we're going to be practically living together, he'll find out ways to make fun of me more!" Hermione shouted, to upset to realize what she was saying.

"Ms. Granger, I would like to inform you that Mr. Malfoy has indeed changed. We met before the school year started, and we talked. He told me he was sorry for what he had done, and is now on our side, helping us defeat You-Know-Who! And before you say he was lying, he even agreed to use Veritaserum. Now I'd like you to come with me so I can show you your new dorm."

Hermione wanted to say more, but in fear she would anger McGonagall more, she kept her mouth shut, and followed the Professor down the spiral staircase. Once they were down the staircase, the professor led Hermione down many hallways, and down a few staircases, before she reached a portrait of a young girl, around the age of ten.

After saying the password, Unity, Mcgonagall told her she didn't have to go down to dinner if she didn't want to, and she could use the kitchen in the common room if she was hungry, before leaving Hermione alone to explore her new room.

The room was beautiful, and very spacious. The walls were a light beige color, and the floor was a light brown. Around the walls of the room were numerous bookcases, filled with many books. In the corner of the room was a kitchen, which had white colored walls and a tiled floor. Half of the furniture was green, and the other half was red. After looking around a little, Hermione went over to the doors, though she was not sure which was hers. She decided to take the one on the right, but to her surprise, someone's stuff was already in there.

Baffled, she went into the other room, and put her stuff away. _Why would Malfoy's stuff be here already? He can't have come to school early like me, right? And if he did, then why? _As she pondered this, she went back to the common room, and sat down in one of the red colored chairs by the fire. She took out her favorite book and began to read.

As she read, she lost track of time, and before she knew it, it was getting dark. She decided not to go to dinner, since McGonagall had said she didn't have to. She started reading again, and didn't even notice when the common room door opened at first, until she heard a voice she knew all too well.

"Well, well, if it isn't Granger. You weren't at dinner. I had to give the welcome to Hogwarts speech by myself."

"I'm well aware I wasn't at dinner Malfoy. McGonagall told me I was allowed to skip." Hermione replied.

"Why, sick Granger?" Draco said, with some concern in his voice.

"And why would I tell you? I'm sure you'd be glad if I was. " Hermione snapped at him. She didn't try to sound mean, but she had enough to deal with without Malfoy butting in.

"Fine, don't tell me. I just wanted to know if it was contagious. Wouldn't want both of us sick, now would we?" Draco said, any hint of concern now gone.

"No, I'm sure _we_ wouldn't."

"You know what, forget I asked. I hope whatever's wrong with you is serious, then I wouldn't have to put up with you for the entire year." Draco didn't know what made him say it, but as soon as he did, he regretted it. The hurt in her eyes made it much worse. "Granger, wait that didn't come out right…" He started, before he got interrupted by Hermione.

"And how was it supposed to come out?" Hermione demanded, tears filling her eyes, as she glared at the blonde. "Don't bother trying to pretend you didn't mean what you said Malfoy, I know how much you hate _Mudbloods_ like me, how you wished we all would die."

"Don't call yourself a Mudblood" He said softly, shocking Hermione immensely. "This isn't how I wanted things to go." He paused for a second, before saying, "I'm sorry, for everything. I'm sorry for how I treated you, and Potter, and Weasley. I am also sorry for calling you a… Mudblood."

To say Hermione was shocked now would be an understatement. She never expected Draco Malfoy, Slytherin Pureblood, to apologize to her, Hermione Granger, Gryffindor Mudblood. She wouldn't have believed him if she hadn't seen the look of sincerity in his eyes. They both stood there in silence for a few moments, before Hermione replied.

"Umm… I-I don't know what to say…"

"I know, I didn't expect you to except my apology, but I do want you to know I have changed."

And with that, Draco left Hermione alone to her extremely confused thoughts.

~XoXoXoXoX~

The sound of chirping birds was the first sound Hermione heard in the morning.

As soon as she got up, she remembered the night before, and what Malfoy had said to her. _Is it possible he has actually changed? He's Draco Malfoy; him changing would be like a leopard changing its spots, or a tiger changing its strips. But what about that look? _

Hermione mentally shook herself, saying if he really had changed, he would show it today. She put on her wig, and went to the bathroom to enjoy a long, hot shower. As the water rolled down her face, and back, her mind wandered back to Malfoy. After her shower was finished, she dressed in her robes, and wig, before exiting the bathroom.

As she was about to leave the common room to go down to breakfast, she heard her name being called from behind her, soft, but strangely sweet. She turned around to see Malfoy standing there. They stood there for a while in silence, just looking at each other. Hermione never noticed before how handsome Malfoy was, since he was always smirking, which she thought was an ugly expression. What she saw on his face now was sadness, and as she looked in his eyes, she saw pain.

Before she even knew what she was going to do, she walked up to him. They were so close, that she could feel his breath on her face. A minute passed, and she said to him quietly, but with complete sincerity, "I believe you," before walking out the common room door.

She didn't know what made her say it, but she knew it was the truth, she believed he changed.

And that was all he needed.


	3. Chapter 3: Friendship

**A/N I'M SORRY FOR TAKING SO LONG TO WRITE. There, I said it. Go down to the bottom for the real A/N**

Hermione walked down to breakfast, thinking of nothing but the blonde she shared the dorms with. She was so lost in her own world; she didn't even realize when she made it to the great hall.

"Hermione!" She heard Ginny say, before she got tackled in a big hug from her friend.

"Hey Ginny! It's good to see you! How are you?" Hermione said, as she hugged the girl back.

"Why weren't you at the feast yesterday? I thought something had happened to you, since you weren't on the train either!"

"Oh, umm well... "Hermione started, before she got interrupted.

"Hermione!" She heard two voices behind her say. She turned and came face to face with her two best friends, Ron Weasley and Harry Potter.

"Where were you yesterday? We were worried when you weren't on the train, or at the feast! What happened?" Harry said with concern in his voice.

"I, uh, was sick. Professor Mcgonagall let me floo here, instead of the long train ride, and I decided to skip dinner, since I wasn't feeling well." Hermione didn't entirely know why she wasn't telling her friends what was wrong with her, but she didn't, and the others didn't ask for more detail, just wishing her to feel better.

Breakfast past by quickly, and soon it was time for her first class, double potions. Slughorn started the class with review of the previous year, and Hermione thought it was quite easy. She looked around the classroom, to see how many made it into advanced potions this year.

It was a small class, consisting only of half a dozen Hufflepuffs, eight Ravenclaws, three Gryffindors (Harry, Ron, and herself) and two Slytherins, who she recognized as Blaise Zabini, and none other than the one and only Draco Malfoy.

Returning her attention to the front of the class, taking notes even though she already knew everything Slughorn was saying.

The rest of the day passed without any difficulties, and before she knew it, it was time for her first patrol with Malfoy.

"Hello Granger. Ready for patrols?" Malfoy said as she entered their common room.

"I suppose" She said, sighing.

They walked along the corridors in silence, not a tense one as was expected by Hermione, but a comfortable one. As the time passed, she found herself looking at Draco.

He had matured since the previous year. In their close proximity, she could see his brilliant grey eyes, the beautiful way his face was shaped, the soft pink of his lips. She felt something flutter in her stomach as she looked at him, a feeling she couldn't quite place.

"Like what you see Granger?" She heard Malfoy say, pulling her out of the sort of daze she was in.

"What are you talking about Malfoy?" She responded, a slight blush on her cheeks.

"Well, you have been staring at me for the past 15 minutes, so, do you like what you see?"

"For your information, I wasn't staring, I was merely... looking"

"Right."

"Oh shut up, and let's finish the patrol."

~XOXOXOXOXOXOXO~

A month had passed since the first day of school, and a tentative friendship with her fellow head had begun. She didn't know exactly why, but she found she rather enjoyed his company. The only problem with her and Draco's friendship was the fact it had to be secret.

The second day back to school, Draco had come up to the other two members of the trio to apologize, yet they weren't as forgiving as Hermione. Even though Harry had seen Draco's refusal to kill Dumbledore, he couldn't bring himself to forgive him just yet, but he agreed to a sort of truce. Ron was a different story. Before Draco could even get one word out, Ron yelled at him, and the whole thing ended with a trip to the hospital wing for both of them, mild cuts and bruises on each of their faces.

Throughout the month, Hermione had been meaning to tell her friends about the cancer, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. Everyone was already stressed enough about Voldemort, they didn't need to worry about her, she told herself.

This brings us to today, the day of Hermione's fifth treatment.

~XOXOXOXOXOXOXO~

She woke up Saturday morning feeling ill, and it took her a second to remember why. She had to leave the school, secretly, to get her treatment. She had to do this 3 other times before, yet it still was difficult for her to do.

Looking at her clock, she noticed it was only five A.M. After a mini debate, she decided to get up, and start the day. She took her shower as usual, getting dressed in the bathroom. When she got out, it was six, so she had to go meet McGonagall so she could leave for her appointment. What she didn't expect, was to hear a soft, drawling voice.

"Where are you going?" Hermione jumped when she heard this, and turned to where the voice was. Standing there, with his hair mussed from sleep and wearing only a pair of trousers was her fellow Head.

"N-Nowhere…" She answered, after a minute of staring at him.

"Right, you're dressed, and were heading towards the door because it's fun… You've been gone the past few Saturdays"

"No I haven't, I've just… been at the library."

"Right." He drawled, "That's what you said the last time I asked, and funny enough, I happened to be at the library last Saturday, and guess who wasn't there?"

When he said that, she instantly paled.

**A/N I'm soooooo sorry for taking so long. As I said last time, I've been sick, and I've gotten sicker. I've missed a lot of school, and this story is kinda hard to write. I am not going to promise anything, but if I get at least one review, I'll try to keep writing. I'm sorry for the kinda cliffhanger, but I didn't know what else to write, so… yeah.**


	4. Chapter 4: The Explanation

"M-Maybe you just didn't see me?" Hermione squeaked.

"Hermione, please, just tell me where you're going. I thought we were friends, so why can't you tell me?" He yelled.

"I-I can't Draco," She whispered, tears rolling down her face, "I-I just can't." With that said, she sank to the floor, silently sobbing.

In a matter of seconds Draco was next to her, and put his arms around her, trying to comfort her. Unfortunately, he wasn't used to crying girls, so he was a little awkward.

"Hey Hermione, I'm sorry, I just… you don't have to tell me if you don't want to, I just wanted to know. So, please, don't cry…"

They stayed on the floor for a few more minutes, before Hermione calmed down enough to talk.

"I'm sorry Draco," She takes a deep breath, debating if she should tell him, before continuing. "I-I've been going to Saint Mungo's, for treatment for… my Leukemia."

Draco sat there, not knowing how to respond, before he hugged her tight. "Oh Hermione, I'm so sorry."

A few more tear's escaped her eyes, and she put her head down on his shoulder. They stayed like this for a minute more, before she remembered her appointment.

"I have to go, otherwise I'll be late." She wiped the tears from her face, and began to leave, before she turned back to Draco, "Oh, and Draco, please don't tell anyone, not yet at least."

"I won't."

Hermione left, leaving Draco there to think over what just happened.

~XOXOXOXOXOXOXOX~

"Ms. Granger, you're late"

"I'm sorry Professor, I got caught up in something, let us go now."

~XOXOXOXOXOXOXOX~

Hermione got back around evening time later that day. Feeling exhausted, she went back to her common room.

Sitting in the chair by the fire was Draco. After sitting herself down on the couch next to him, he said, "Did everything go well?"

"Yeah. I'm just a little tired. It's been a long day."

"Have you had anything to eat?"

"Yeah." The silence that fell was a thick and awkward one, until Hermione remembered something.

"Hey, Draco?"

"What?"

"When I got here early the first day, your stuff was already in your room, why? You weren't here early as well, were you?"

He stiffened a little at her words. "I, uh, was here early…"

"What? Why?"

"That, is none of your business" He snapped, getting up to leave. "Now, as you said, it's been a long day, and I'm rather tired, so I think I'll go to bed. Goodnight." And with that, he left, leaving Hermione more confused than ever.

~XOXOXOXOXOXO~

The next week was tense for the duo, with Draco snapping at, and insulting, Hermione for no reason at all, or just ignoring her altogether. She tried to ignore his comments, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't. She also couldn't understand why he was acting this way. She had told him a huge secret of hers, and now he was insulting her? It didn't make sense. And Hermione was determined to figure out what was wrong with him.

"Draco?" She said.

It was late at night on Thursday, and he had just come in from a late Quidditch practice. The practice ended at 8:30 PM, she knew, and it was now after 10:00.

As soon as he heard her, he immediately went to his room, wanting to not talk to her. Sensing this, she got up from her spot on the couch, and went as fast as she could to stop him from entering his room.

"Wait! Please Draco, just talk to me! Why have you been insulting me so much lately? Did-did I do something wrong? I thought we were friends, you even said so yourself. What is wrong?" She asked him desperately. She really missed talking to him, for even though they'd only been friends for a month, she felt as strongly for him as she did for Ron or Harry. She needed him to talk to her.

"Nothing is wrong, just leave me alone. We aren't friends." He said semi-coldly.

Tears filled her eyes when he said that, and because of everything that had happened, all that stress and sadness, she fainted.

~XOXOXOXOXO~  
>She woke up a few hours later, around one A.M., in her bed. Next to her bed was some water. She sat up; still feeling tired, and drank some of the water. She then noticed she was not alone in the room. Sitting in the chair next to her was Draco, and from the look of it he was asleep. <em>If we are not friends, why did he stay and sleep in the chair next to my bed? It's not very comfortable… <em>She thought, feeling so lost and confused. All she wanted to do was to wake up, and for it to still be summer, before everything with her cancer. Hell, she wished it could be first year again, back when things weren't as bad as they were now. When did life get so complicated?

Even though she was still tired, she couldn't sleep. After fifteen minutes, she gave up on sleep, and took to staring at Draco. She felt so confused by him. She didn't know what she did wrong, why he went back to hating her, even going as far to say they weren't friends. Was it because she had cancer? She hoped that wasn't it, and it didn't make sense. It seemed like he cared when she first told him. So why? She thought about this until she fell asleep from exhaustion an hour later.

When morning came around, she found herself alone in her room again, but the water glass was full. Shaking her head slightly, she got up, and started her usual routine.

~XOXOXOXOXOX~

The day started normally for her, or as normally as it could, being that it was her messed up life. Draco was still ignoring her, Ron and Harry were oblivious as usual, the only one who noticed something was up with her was Ginny.

"So, you going to tell me what has gotten you so down lately?" Ginny asked, right after breakfast since she had a free period, and was walking with Hermione to her (Hermione's) first class, Arithmancy.

"What do you mean Gin?"

"Well, you've looked so depressed for the past week. And before that, you looked happy. So, what happened?"

"It's nothing, just some stuff that has happened."

"Some stuff? That's all you can come up with? Come on 'Mione, you know you can tell me anything, right? Please, tell me."

Hermione paused, and bit her lip in thought. After a moment, she replied.

"Alright Gin," She said slowly, "I'll tell you. After class is over though, alright?"

"Alright Hermione, but you better tell me everything."

And so she did. After class ended, they went back to her dorm and she told Ginny everything, about Draco, her cancer, everything. By the time she finished, she was in tears, and so was Ginny.

"Hermione, I had no idea. Why didn't you tell me before about the cancer? I could have helped you!"

"I was afraid, Gin."

"What were you afraid of?"

"That this would all be real! If you all knew about it, t-than I c-couldn't pretend that everything was ok! Y-you'd all look at me, l-like I was going to die, or, y-you'd be careful around me. I-I didn't want that! I just wanted things to be n-normal. B-but, nothing's going to be normal, and now, now I'm alone in this. " Tears fall from her face as she silently sobs, and closes her eyes.

"Oh Hermione. No, you're not alone; I will help you through this. Ron, and Harry, they'll help you through this as well, if you want them. Things will get better, and things will get back to normal, you'll see. You have to tell Harry and Ron, they should know."

"No." Hermione said forcefully, "I-I don't want them to know. T-they already have e-enough on t-their minds w-with V-Voldemort, I-I don't want t-to add to t-things they will w-worry about."

"Hermione, I'm almost certain they'd want to know. They love you, and they would want to know if you're sick. Please, please tell them."

"I-I don't know if I can Gin. I-I'll try."

"That's all I ask 'Mione."

Hermione nods, and looks down, still silently crying.

"Now, about Malfoy. I don't know what to say. I mean, he started avoiding you after you told him about your… problem? It doesn't make sense… Maybe you said something that he didn't like?"

"Well, I asked him why he was at school early, and he yelled at me, saying it wasn't my business. But, it was one question. Why would he start ignoring me because of that?"

"I don't know… a man's mind works in mysterious ways, and Malfoy is no exception. I suggest you just keep trying to talk to him about it. It's obvious he doesn't hate you, or else he wouldn't have stayed overnight after you fainted… But I really don't know."

"Thanks for trying Gin. It's getting late, almost dinner time. Shall we go down?" Hermione said with a small smile.

"We shall." Ginny replied, smiling back.

**A/N, So. It's been a while. I'm sorry! I've kinda lost my inspiration to write this story. I got inspired to write this, because I was bored, and I had something pop into my brain. I hope it wasn't too bad. Please review with your thoughts! Thanks!**


	5. Chapter 5: No One Knows

No one truly knows what happened that night, only three people do, one is dead, and the other, an enemy. That night plagued his mind every night in his dreams, over and over. He got punished, of course he did, his father couldn't just let him go that easily could he? He had failed, had he not? So every night, right before bed, he got punished. The Cruciatus curse was a favorite. Then, in his dreams, he'd see things differently. What if he'd actually killed the headmaster? What if he'd taken the offer? Would things have turned out differently? Would his mother…

Draco woke up with a start. He'd had that dream again, about that night. This time, he had done it, killed Dumbledore, and he got praised from his father, he had felt happy in the dream. So why did he feel empty now?

He got up, and took a shower to take his mind off of his dream, not paying attention to the time. He spent an hour in the shower, before he felt ready to leave the warmth. Getting dressed, he realized it was only 6:00 AM, and he had a long time before class started. He went out to the common room, and sat, thinking over everything that had happened, and how everything had gone horribly wrong.

~XOXOXOXOXOXO~

About an hour later, Hermione emerged from her room. He looked over at her, and got up to leave, not wanting to talk to her, especially after what he had said to her last time.

It's not like he didn't want to be her friend, but if how could he be? He was a Death Eater, she was a Mudblood. Their talk reminded him of that, that they lived in two different worlds, and it would be best to forget about her now, and vise versa, before their friendship got irreversible. So if he had to force himself to ignore and insult her, he would. It would save them the hurt later on.

"Draco, wait, please." He heard her say. Should he ignore her, and leave, or stay and talk.

Making up his mind, he turned to her, and said, "What do you want M-Mudblood?"

He could see the hurt on her face when he said that word, and wished he could take it back, not wanting to be the cause of her pain anymore, especially now that he knew her secret.

"I just wanted to talk to you! I-I know you don't consider us friends, but I do!" She said through tears, "You have been acting like an ass to me, ever since I told you about my cancer. And, and I don't understand why! What did I do? Did, did I say something wrong? Is it because I asked you why you were here early? Just tell me, and then you can go back to hating me. I just want to know."

He saw her tear stricken face, and his heart broke. He knew he had feelings for her, ones that were more than friends. That made things so much harder for him.

"Why am I acting like an ass to you? Maybe it's because you are a Mudblood, and I'm a Death Eater. Our worlds don't mix Granger; they never have, and never will. It was stupid of you to think we could ever be friends!"

She came up to him, and slapped him hard across the face.

"How dare you? You're saying I'm the stupid one? YOU are the one who apologized to ME. I would have been content on hating you, but instead you had to, apologize, make me think you had actually changed! You know what? You're right, I am stupid, thinking you could ever change; it must have been wishful thinking." She gave him a look of upmost hatred, and then stormed out, leaving Draco feeling horrible for what he had said.

~XOXOXOXOXOX~

Draco stayed in his dorm the rest of the day, not caring about class, not wanting to face her. He wished things could be different, that he could take her in his arms, and just hold her, and tell her everything would be alright. But he couldn't, it would be too selfish, and would put her in danger. If the Dark Lord found out he was even remotely close to her, he would hurt her, and he couldn't handle if because of him she got hurt.

Around dinner time, he found he was hungry, so he went down to dinner, hoping he didn't see her.

But he did, she was sitting with her friends, laughing, having a good time. He felt his heart tug, happy she was happy, but slightly sad he wasn't the cause of it. He sat down at the Slytherin table, and watched Hermione with her friends. He was zoned out of the rest of the table and their conversations, not like he cared much anyway.

"Draco, mate, you alright?" Someone said. He looked over and saw it was his friend, Blaise Zabini.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"You sure? You've been staring at Granger for the past ten minutes." Blaise said with a smirk on his face.

Draco glares at Blaise. "That is nothing. Leave it alone Zabini."

"Fine, fine, it's not my fault you're in_ love_ with Granger."

"Shut up Zabini, you don't know anything." He growled, before storming out of the dining hall, having lost his appetite.

He went to his common room, and sat down in a chair by the fire, his head in his hands.

"Why does life have to be so bloody complicated?" He growled to no one. Little did he know he was not alone in the room.

"Who knows? "

He looked up, surprised, and saw Hermione standing in the middle of the room.

"What are you doing here Granger? Shouldn't you be at dinner?" He growled, angered that she was there, not knowing if he could stand her being so close to him.

"Shouldn't you?" She shrugs, "I don't know, I saw you leave. I-I decided to follow I guess." She shrugged again.

"Go back and have fun with your friends Granger. "

"No. What happened? "

"You don't give up do you? Just leave me alone Granger. Why can't you just leave me alone? Forget about me?" Tears filled his eyes, and he tried hard to not let them fall. " I'm not worth your time, or your attention. So just leave me be." He turned his head away from her, as a single tear fell down his face.

She goes over to him, and gently moves his head to face her.

"You are worth it Draco. And no, I don't give up, ever. You should know that by now." She gives him a small smile. "Now, why do you think you're not worth my time and attention?"

"I'm a Death Eater Granger, I used to work for the Dark Lord, and I almost killed Dumbledore."

"Key words there, _used_ to, _almost. _You have to be on the good side, otherwise Headmistress McGonagall wouldn't have let you come back, and you didn't kill him, Harry told me how you lowered your wand right before the other Death Eater's got there. Also, how you did it to save your mother, for if you didn't Voldemort would have killed you and her."

He looks down, and tears roll down his face. He doesn't try to stop them, he just lets them flow. Hermione pulls him into a hug, and holds him, saying soothing things.

After a few moments pass, he calms himself down enough, and looks at her.

"We can't be friends, if-if he finds out, you wouldn't be safe. He'll try to hurt you. I can't have that Hermione."

She brushes his hair out of his face, and smiles, her hand lingering on his face. "That's no reason Draco, he's out to hurt me anyway, I'm a muggleborn, remember? And I'm friends with Harry Potter. Whether we're friends or not, he's going to be out to get me. "

He closes his eyes, and leans into her touch while she speaks. When she finished, he opened his eyes, and looked at her. After about a minute, he leaned forward, and kissed her.

It was like electricity flowed through them, from where their lips met to all throughout their bodies. It was a sweet, gentle kiss, but the electricity made it the best kiss either ever had. Moments past, but to them it felt like hours. Finally they pulled apart, for breath.

Draco held his breath, waiting for her reaction. Slowly, Hermione smiled, and went in for another kiss. Draco could never remember being happier than he was now. He concluded, he never was.

He and Hermione spent the rest of the night in one another's embrace, both feeling content with life for that one moment.

**A/N Another chapter ^-^ I know it's not that good, but I didn't get a chance to read it over, so please, don't judge to hard! Also, I know I got Hermione and Draco together rather abruptly, but… it has been a month in their time. So feelings would grow, and after all their fighting, them making up this way made sense to me. I'll try to write more soon! Also, Draco secret will be revealed soon! **


	6. Chapter 6: Happiness

**A/N, I have changed the ending to this chapter. I now have an idea on where to go next, I'll go into farther detail at the end. Thanks! :D**

Hermione POV.

When I woke the next morning, I felt happy, for the first time in a while. It took me a second to realize why. It also took me a second to realize where I was, and who I was with. When I did, I opened my eyes, only to see his brilliant gray one's staring at me. I smiled, he smiled back.

"Good morning." He said.

"Morning" I said, staring deep into his eyes, before moving my gaze down to his full pink lips. I wanted to capture them with my own, and so I did.

This wasn't something I usually would have done; I usually would have talked about it with him, demanded what we were, and where we stood. But now, I just wanted to feel him, to pretend that he loved me, even if it was just make-believe. To know someone loved me, and cared for me, would be a welcome relief after all that has happened.

I know that there are others, like my parents and friends, who loved me, but what I needed was more than parental and friendly love. I needed real love, and I almost didn't care where I found it.

When I kissed Draco, I felt safe, and loved. Like nothing bad would ever happen to me. All I wanted was for the feeling to last forever.

But, like every good thing, it had to end. It was time for me to go and get my treatment. I pulled away from Draco, already yearning to be kissing him again.

"I've got to go. My appointment for my treatment is in an hour, and I have to get ready." I told him, reluctantly leaving his embrace.

"Alright Hermione, hope it goes well." He gave me a quick kiss, before I got up, and walked over to the bathroom to take a quick shower. Fifteen minutes later, I walked out of the bathroom dressed, with my wig in place. Draco was in his room, doing what, I don't know. I lifted my head up high, and walked out of the common room to start the day.

~XOXOXOXOXOXO~

I went down to breakfast, hoping to eat something quickly. When I got there, I saw Harry and Ron, and they were close together, talking about something quietly. I sat next to them, wondering what they were talking about (Since it would be silly to talk about Horcruxes at the table), causing them to jump.

"Hey guys, what are you talking about?"

"Oh, nothing Hermione." Ron said hurriedly.

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Really? Tell me, you guys can trust me, right."

"Of course we can Hermione, it's just… well, we were talking about you." Harry said, with concern on his face.

"M-me?" I said, praying they didn't ask me about where I went on Saturdays.

"Yeah, you've been distant ever since the beginning of the year. What's up?" Ron said.

"Oh, it's nothing…"I paused. Should I tell them? I really didn't want to add anymore worry onto Harry or Ron. But, if I kept holding back, they would just worry why I was so distant. Taking a deep breath, and casting a quick Muffliato around us, I began.

"Actually, no… it's not. Harry, Ron… I have leukemia."

Well, that could have gone better. Ron, who had not been expecting this news, nearly choked on his food. Harry started banging on his back, before turning back to me.

"Are you serious?" Remembering who he was talking to, he then said, "Oh, Hermione! Why didn't you tell us before? We could have helped you; you shouldn't have had to handle this by yourself!"

"I know, but… I didn't want anyone to know, because if they did, it all became real. Also, I didn't want to add anymore worry on you Harry, what with Voldemort, and everything else…"

Both Harry and Ron were quiet for a while after I finished talking. Finally, Harry started talking.

"Hermione, I still wish you had told us. We're your friends, we care for you. I don't care if I have more worry. I love you 'Mione, and I want to know if you're sick, or hurt, or anything. Please don't keep anything like this from us again." When he finished, I had tears in my eyes, and I was smiling.

"I won't, I'm so sorry I did. Forgive me?"

"Of course!" He then gave me a quick hug.

I looked down at my watch, and saw it was almost time for me to go. I excused myself from my two friends, and walked down to the headmistresses office.

~XOXOXOXOXOXOXO~

"Hermione Granger?" The nurse said, calling me in for my appointment. I got up, and walked with her to the treatment center, and sat down on the seat. After a few minutes, my Healer, Healer John, came into the room. John was an older fellow, with gray shoulder length hair, and gray bread. He walked over to me, and took my blood, then started the procedure, which is a bunch of spells, and some foul tasting potions. They took my blood again, to make sure the treatment worked, and to see how many more times would I have to come in. I waited about half an hour, before Healer John came back in.

"Well, Hermione, I've got some good news, and some bad news. We have looked at your blood samples, and your body is responding well to the treatment, so I wouldn't expect you having to come in more than one or two more times for treatment. If we're lucky, the cancer will go away completely, but there is a chance it will go into remission, meaning the cancer is still in your body, but doesn't show itself. You have about a 70/30 shot of the cancer going into remission, which is something we obviously don't want. We will continue to monitor you, even after your last treatment, to make sure the cancer is gone completely." He then got up, and helped me up. I left the hospital, my head reeling with this new information.

After flooing back to Hogwarts, I went directly back to the heads common room, where I sat on the couch, and cried. I could only pray the cancer left completely, and that it would come back sometime in the future. I stayed on the couch for an hour before I heard the common room door open. I didn't look up, I just stayed in my current position, and waited. Footsteps came closer to me, and I felt a shift on the couch. I then felt myself get pulled into the arms of someone, and they whispered soothing things into my ear. I looked up, and saw it was Draco; his face was soft, concern clear on his face. It was in that moment that I realized I loved him. I really loved him, and it terrified, and thrilled me at the same time.

We sat there for a few moments, before we heard a knock at the door. Draco got up, and opened the door. Standing there, were my two best friends.

Harry entered and scowled at Draco. "What are you doing here ferret?"

"I live here Potter." Draco replied calmly.

Harry was about to say something else, when Ron saw me on the couch, tearstains on my face. He immediately pushed Draco against the wall, and put his arm at Draco's throat.

"What the hell did you do to her Ferret? What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything Weasel! Let go of me now."

"Like hell, why is she crying? I know you did something to her!"

"Ronald Weasley, let him go right now!" I screamed at him, getting up from my spot on the couch. Ron kept his hold, staring at me in shock. "Let him go now." I repeated.

Ron, slightly hesitantly, let Draco go. "But 'Mione, he's Malfoy, he was making you upset."

I rolled my eyes at him. "No he wasn't Ronald, he was trying to help."

Throughout the entirety of what had just happened, Harry was quiet, but he spoke out now. "He was trying to help? But he's a Death Eater, why would he want to help you?"

I rounded on him, anger in my eyes. "Draco Malfoy is no more a Death Eater then I am, so don't you dare call him that Harry James Potter."

I felt a strange sort of satisfaction at the terrified look Harry had on his face. I then turned, and walk over to Draco. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just keep your… friends away from me please."

I laugh a little, before looking back at Harry and Ron, noticing the confused look on both of their faces.

"Why are you guys here? Did you have any reason for coming here?"

"We just wanted to see how you were Hermione, after your… you know." Harry said.

"I'm fine Harry, I'm just tired. Is that all you wanted to do?"

"Um, yeah, basically…"

"Well, then could you please leave? I'd like to rest for a little bit."

"Uh, sure, of course Hermione," Harry says, "Just take care, and rest well, ok?"

"I will Harry. Bye." I say, as I lead both Harry and Ron to the door, and watch as they walk through it, before closing the door, and walking back to the couch, where I sit with my eyes closed, before I feel the couch move.

"So, are you actually going to rest, or did you just say that to get rid of those two idiots?"

I open my eyes, and look at him. "I just wanted them to leave." I confess.

He grins, and leans forward to kiss me. "That's my girl." He says into my lips.

I kissed him back, feeling happy. Happy he is mine. Happy I finally told Harry and Ron. All in all, just plain happy.

**A/N I decided to change the ending. I didn't like the old ending to this chapter, so I changed it. I have 2 ways to go with this story. I can end it here, and add an epilogue, telling Draco's secret, and all of that, or I can have a few more chapters, explaining Draco's secret in more detail. I kinda just want to end it here, and just make an epilogue, but you tell me.  
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**~Dramionelover345~**


	7. Authors Note: Important

**A/N: Sorry, not an update, but I thought this was important to write.**

**I got an anonymous review saying this story move to fast, and they want me to explain things a lot more. I agree, I would love to do this, I would love to explain all of my thoughts to their full extent, but I just don't have the time. I have 5 months of work to do in about 8-9 weeks, because I was sick. Whenever I am online, I don't want to do more work, thinking and writing out all of my ideas. When I started this story, I hoped I could write it all out, but that was before I stopped going to school due to major migraines. I apologize to those of you who do like this story. I just want to finish it, so those of you who do like this story won't be wondering, "Whatever happened to Hermione and Draco?" I hate it when writers stop writing for months at a time, so I understand why some of you might be mad at me. I just want to finish this story, so I don't keep thinking about it, when I should be doing other things, like my school work. (I also like to repeat myself a lot)**

**Maybe during the summer, when I'm not doing anything, I can come back to this story, and write an alternate ending. But for now, I just want it to be done. Again, I apologize. **

**~Dramionelover345~**


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